Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Renewable Energy: Supply Chains

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what further support they aregiving to the renewable energy supply chain.

Lord Callanan: The Government has made £160m available to support investment in major port and manufacturing infrastructure through the Offshore Wind Manufacturing Investment Support Scheme. The Government is also offering a further £31m, to be matched by industry funding, for research and development in floating offshore wind projects.

Electronic Cigarettes: Young People

Baroness Redfern: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the powers held by Trading Standards to tackle the illegal sale of disposable vape products to underage young people.

Lord Callanan: Trading Standards already have powers to tackle underage sales of products. Where there is evidence of shops selling age restricted products to underage people, this should be reported to Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 or through its website in the first instance.

Eggs: Costs

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment the Grocery Code Adjudicator has made of egg production, and in particular whether rising costs of egg farms are being met by retailers; and what plans they have to intervene in the event of an assessment that these costs are not being met.

Lord Callanan: The Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) enforces the Groceries Supply Code of Practice (the Code) which does not regulate the price agreed between retailers and suppliers. The GCA has no role in determining what a retailer should pay for a product. The GCA has, however, published seven golden rules to ensure that the 14 largest grocery retailers who are designated under the Code handle price negotiations lawfully and fairly. The GCA is monitoring adherence to the golden rules and any direct supplier to one of the designated retailers that is having issues with a negotiation should contact the GCA whose details are available on the GOV.UK website.

Housing: Insulation

Lord Foster of Bath: To ask His Majesty's Government what research they have carried out in the last 12 months into (1) the propensity of (a) homeowners, (b) private residential landlords, or (c) social landlords, to carry out energy efficiency improvements to their properties, (2) the barriers to making such improvements, and (3) how any such barriers might be overcome; and what were the results of that research.

Lord Callanan: The Department continually gathers information on the propensity to install measures as it delivers energy efficiency policies. The potential issues these schemes address include financial barriers, information on what measures to install, concerns about the quality of installations and access to installers. Independent evaluation reports are published that summarise key lessons.

Vacancies

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of the shortage of workers in key sectors of the economy; and what steps they are taking to address such shortages.

Lord Callanan: The Government continually monitors the status of the labour market, which is strong by historical standards and is close to record levels of (high) employment, (low) unemployment, and (low) inactivity rates. The Government is investing an additional £3.8 billion into skills and further education over this Parliament to ensure workers can develop the skills businesses need. Where low pay is a barrier, the Government is supporting better pay by ensuring that all tips go to staff and increasing the National Living Wage to £10.42 an hour. The 2019 manifesto pledged changes to enhance workers’ rights and support people to stay in work. The Government is backing five Private Members’ Bills which will deliver on these commitments - helping new parents, unpaid carers, hospitality workers, and giving employees better access to flexible working.

Clothing: Manufacturing Industries

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to end unfair purchasing practices in fashion, including the exploitation of suppliers and their workers by brands selling into the UK market; and what consideration they have given to introducing (1) a fashion watchdog, and (2) a fashion supply code adjudicator, for this industry.

Lord Callanan: Since October 2020, a wide group of stakeholders comprising retailers, manufacturers and non-profit organisations have been working with the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) under the Apparel and General Merchandise Public Private Protocol to address poor working, pay, and purchasing practices in the UK supply chain. In response to the single enforcement body consultation published last year, the government reaffirmed its commitment to continue engaging with the enforcement bodies and industry partners to strengthen our understanding of the garment trade. We will continue to review this issue and consider options to drive up standards across the sector.

Ministry of Justice

Prison Service: Staff

Lord Hylton: To ask His Majesty's Government whether the number of prison staff declined between 2009 and 2017; if so, by what percentage the number declined; and whether any such decline has since been redressed.

Lord Bellamy: The number of public sector prison staff declined from 46,889 FTE as of 31 March 2009 to 31,232 FTE as of 31 March 2017. This was a decline of 15,657 (33%).Since then, the number of public sector prison staff has increased to stand at 35,575 FTE as of 30 September 2022; an increase of 14% since March 2017.Over the last few years, the MoJ has invested in a number of initiatives to improve the recruitment and retention of operational and non-Operational staff across the prison estate. Whilst we face some difficulties in areas of the country where labour markets are particularly challenging, we continue to deliver recruitment marketing campaigns on a variety of channels for all prisons.The recent pay award has been seen as a positive move to help retain and recruit new staff. We will be monitoring the impact of the 2022/23 pay award which reflects a significant investment to uplift and reform the prison pay structure. We are continuing to use localised market supplements to increase prison officer pay in 18 sites.

Prison Accommodation

Lord Hylton: To ask His Majesty's Government how many prisoners are currently being confined to their cells for 23 hours a day; what assessment they have made of the impact of this practice on prisoner (1) self-harm, (2) assaults, and (3) suicides; and what plans they have to reduce the current level of confinement to address any such impacts.

Lord Bellamy: No prisons are routinely operating a 23 hour per day or similar lockdown and I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave to question HL3355 on 29 November 2022. Maintaining safety continues to be a priority, and where regimes are limited, we continue to prioritise the implementation of key safety interventions. This includes our case management approaches to manage the risk of self-harm and suicide (Assessment, Care in Custody, and Teamwork) and of violent behaviour (Challenge, Support and Intervention Plan), and the delivery of key work, through which prison officers provide one-to-one support for prisoners.

Prison and Probation Service: Equality

Lord Blencathra: To ask His Majesty's Government which minister, if any, was responsible for approving the guidance entitled Recognising transphobic coded language which theHM Prison and Probation Service diversity and inclusion team was reported to have sent to staff employed by the Ministry of Justice.

Lord Bellamy: The guidebook was not approved by ministers and was published by a staff network, rather than as a corporate HM Prison and Probation Service document. To prevent this happening again, the Ministry of Justice is reviewing the rules around communications to staff from network groups, to ensure that all information and materials comply with our policies and legal responsibilities.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Israeli Settlements

The Marquess of Lothian: To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Prime Minister has spoken to Prime Minister-designate of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, about the UK’s position regarding any recognition of illegal West Bank settlements; and in particular, any retroactive legalisation of such settlements, including the Homesh Yeshiva.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: We congratulate Benjamin Netanyahu on his election victory. As one of Israel's closest partners, the UK looks forward to working with Israel to ensure our relationship continues to flourish. We are clear that settlements are illegal under international law and threaten the viability of a two-state solution. The UK urges the Government of Israel to permanently end its settlement expansion and settlement activity in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Israeli outposts in the West Bank are also illegal under international and Israeli law, and should be removed entirely.

Libyan Money Recovery Office

Lord Empey: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the visit of representatives of the Libyan Money Recovery Office to (1) the UK, and (2) other countries.

Lord Empey: To ask His Majesty's Government which UK officials held meetings with representatives of the Libyan Money Recovery Office; what was the purpose of such meetings; and what agreements or understandings were entered into as an outcome of those meetings.

Lord Empey: To ask His Majesty's Government whether the future of frozen Libyan assets held in London was discussed by UK officials and representatives from the Libyan Money Recovery Office at any recent meetings.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Libyan Asset Recovery and Management Office (LARMO) is working to repossesses Libyan assets that were stolen by the Qadhafi regime before and during the 2011 revolution. A LARMO representative met with officials from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office on 26 October to discuss potential options for the future of any recovered assets, with reference to the ongoing assets freeze. FCDO officials reminded LARMO that UN Security Council Resolution 1970 (2011) makes clear that the aim of the Libya asset freeze is to ensure that the frozen funds are preserved until such a time as they can be made available to, and for the benefit of, the people of Libya. Any amendments to the asset freeze will require consensus at the UN Security Council and will be judged against this goal.

Yazidis: Missing Persons

Lord Hylton: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to determine the (1) fate, and (2) whereabouts, of Yazidi women and children who are missing from Iraq and Syria.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon: The Yazidi community has suffered immense pain and loss as a result of the abhorrent crimes inflicted by Daesh. The UK advocated strongly for the passing of the Yazidi Survivors' Law in March 2021 and the establishment of the Directorate of Yazidi Affairs. The Directorate is responsible for searching for survivors and supporting judicial and investigative bodies on holding perpetrators to account. In parallel, we have also provided £2 million to the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Daesh (UNITAD). The UK joined likeminded partners in committing to support Yazidis displaced or abducted by Daesh in a Joint alliance statement issued in October 2021. We will continue to press the newly formed government on the importance of these issues, including searching for those missing Yazidi women and children abducted by Daesh.

Department for Work and Pensions

Employment: Young People

Lord Storey: To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the letter from Baroness Stedman-Scott to all members of the House of Lords on 22 November, what additional measures they are putting in place to help young people find employment during the "economic challenges we are facing".

Baroness Stedman-Scott: The Department for Work and Pensions’ Youth Offer is providing individually tailored work coach support to young people aged 16-24 who are in the Universal Credit Intensive Work Search group. This includes intensive support during the first 13 weeks of a claim through the Youth Employment Programme and a network of Youth Hubs across Great Britain that provide place-based support in partnerships with local providers to help young people into work. The Youth Offer also provides Youth Employability Coaches who support young people facing additional barriers (such as homelessness, addiction, and other complex needs) as well as offering 6 weeks of in-work support once the young person secures a job or an apprenticeship. Youth Employability Coaches also work closely with Disability Employment Advisors to support those with disabilities and health conditions, and partner organisations who can provide specialist advice. Departments are aligning their support across Government to help young people access high quality training and apprenticeship opportunities, as well as preparing them to take advantage of new jobs created in existing and growing sectors. For example, DWP and DfE officials continue to work together on the key areas of improving local skills provision and maximising awareness of skills opportunities in England. This includes taking steps to enhance the quality and joining up of services through Work Coaches and National Careers Service Advisors. To help young people who are already in work and on low incomes to progress, we are extending the support Jobcentres provide to help them increase their earnings and move into better paid, quality jobs. As mentioned in the letter, the nationwide roll-out of the In-Work Progression offer will focus on removing barriers to progression, such as addressing skills gaps.

State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

Lord Blencathra: To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made, if any, of the number of UK citizens living abroad whose pensions are frozen at a level of £100 per week or below.

Lord Blencathra: To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the cost of uprating the pensions of UK citizens living abroad to £100 per week.

Lord Blencathra: To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the cost of uprating the pensions of all UK citizens living abroad to the current level of the state pension.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. As of February 2019, the estimated cost of uprating State Pension in frozen rate countries was around £0.6 billion for 2022 to 2023. This information is published at Estimated costs of uprating State Pension in frozen rate countries - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). The total number of people in receipt of a frozen State Pension abroad at a level under £100 per week was 428,830 as of November 2020. ‘UK citizenship’ is not defined/identifiable in this data. This information is published on Stat-Xplore: Stat-Xplore - Home (dwp.gov.uk)Figure rounded to the nearest 10. The policy on uprating UK State Pensions overseas is long-standing and has been supported by successive post-war Government for over 70 years. We continue to uprate UK State Pensions abroad where there is a legal requirement to do so – for example where there is a reciprocal agreement that provides for uprating. There are no plans to change this policy.

Employment: Young People

Lord Storey: To ask His Majesty's Government what qualifications coaches at the Department for Work and Pensions must obtain when working with young people seeking employment.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: Work Coaches are not required to hold qualifications that are specific to the work they do with young people seeking employment. They undergo a comprehensive learning journey designed to equip them with the tools, skills and behaviours required to provide a high quality, efficient service to all claimants. Work Coaches receive on-going learning in their roles and access to guidance which is refreshed at regular intervals.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Water Companies: Fines

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of investing water company fines into improving waterways.

Lord Benyon: On Wednesday 30th November we announced we will be channelling money from water company fines into schemes to improve the environment. The announcement is available on .gov.uk at the webpage here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/water-company-fines-to-be-channelled-into-environmental-improvements.

Agriculture: Flood Control

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support farmers who (1) improve water quality, and (2) reduce flooding.

Lord Benyon: Farmers and land managers have an important role to play in reducing the risk of flooding and coastal erosion to both rural and urban areas. As well as protecting more than 300,000 homes, the 2015-2021 £2.6bn flood investment programme reduced the risk of flooding to nearly 600,000 acres of agricultural land. The 2021-27 capital programme will offer increased protection to approximately 370,000 acres of agricultural land.Current offers to support farmers include the Countryside Stewardship (CS) scheme, which supports farmers to improve water quality and manage flood risk through a range of grants and advice from Catchment Sensitive Farming. Grants to improve water quality include buffer strips that help reduce the risk of pollutants being transported to watercourses and capital grants to reduce run off of dirty water. Support to manage flood risk include grants to control runoff and make space for water.We are also introducing our new Environmental Land Management schemes, that reward environmental benefits, including water quality and protection from environmental hazards like flooding.

Sewers: Waste Disposal

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to introducing improved product labelling to stop items that are unable to be flushed from blocking sewers.

Lord Benyon: We are considering various options to tackle the issues from commonly littered items, following our call for evidence. These options include a ban on the sale of wet wipes containing plastic, a mandatory ‘flush-ability’ standard, mandatory labelling on packaging, and an extended producer responsibility scheme for wipes containing plastic. We will publish an update on the responses to this call for evidence in due course.

Swimming

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to designate more inland bathing water sites.

Lord Benyon: Bathing waters are designated through an application process, as set out in the regulations. Local authorities, groups and individuals can apply for sites to be designated.Defra has written to the Chief Executive of every local authority in England and other key stakeholders such as swimming associations to signpost the application process.

Reptiles: Animal Housing

Lord Randall of Uxbridge: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to legislate to make provision for snakes in captivity to be kept in containers of at least one snake length.

Lord Benyon: Snakes are provided protection under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. This means that it is an offence to cause them any unnecessary suffering or to fail to provide for their welfare needs.In England, the keeping of snakes in captivity, outside of zoos, is currently regulated by the Animal Welfare (Licencing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (LAIA). These Regulations require any business selling animals as pets - including snakes - to be licensed. Local authorities are responsible for granting these licences, and the licences must include a general condition requiring licensees to keep all animals in an environment suitable to their species and condition. The statutory guidance to local authorities contains details in relation to the minimum welfare standards that are considered appropriate for snakes, including minimum requirements relating to vivarium size.The statutory five-year LAIA Post-Implementation Review (PIR) is due by October 2023. As part of this review, we will be seeking views and considering evidence on the minimum standards for the size of temporary vivaria for snakes in pet selling establishments.

Eggs: Marketing

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the 16-week grace period during which eggs from birds that were intended to be free-range may be marketed as such despite the introduction of mandatory housing measures on 7 November.

Lord Benyon: Egg Marketing Standards provides a 16-week derogation period during which the free-range description can be retained on eggs even if hens have been housed.Defra currently has no plans to review this derogation period. However, in recognition of the pressures the egg sector is currently facing, particularly rising input costs alongside the impacts of Avian Influenza, Defra has granted a concession which will apply if the housing orders that are currently in place in England exceed the 16-week derogation period. This concession will allow producers and packers, on a one-off basis, the option to use either direct print to pack or an affixed label on free-range boxes. Accompanying clear and transparent point of sale signage should also be in place to ensure consumers are not misled and to avoid undermining consumer confidence in the free-range industry.

Home Office

Asylum: Applications

Lord Kamall: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to speed up the processing of applications for asylum.

Lord Murray of Blidworth: The Home Office are currently dealing with a sustained high level of new asylum claims, including from those who have recently arrived on small boats, which is creating additional pressures on the asylum system.We are, nevertheless, committed to ensuring asylum claims are considered without unnecessary delay and ensuring that those who need protection are granted as soon as possible so that they can start to integrate and rebuild their lives.The Home Office have an asylum transformation programme that will speed up and simplify decision making, reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision. These initiatives include conducting shorter, more focused interviews or omitting interviews where it is appropriate to do so, streamlining decision templates for grants and refusals and focusing on improving quality to ensure decisions are right first time.We are also increasing the use of technology, improving screening so that more information is captured as early as possible, and have extensive recruitment and training plans in place, including career progression options that will aid the retention of staff.

Asylum: Applications

Lord Kamall: To ask His Majesty's Government what is the (1) shortest, and (2) longest, time taken to process applications for asylum.

Lord Murray of Blidworth: The Home Office is unable to state what the shortest and longest processing time is for asylum applications as this information is not published and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost because it would require a manual search through individual records.However, the Home Office does publish data on the number asylum applications awaiting an initial decision by duration, for main applicants only. This data can be found at Asy_04 of the published Immigration Statistics: List of tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).The Home Office also publish data on the percentage of asylum applications processed within 6 months of the date of claim. Data showing the number of asylum claims received from 2014 – 2022 that were processed within 6 months can be found at Asy_01 of the Asylum Transparency Data: Immigration and protection data: Q3 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Veterans: Hong Kong

Lord Craig of Radley: To ask His Majesty's Government when the decision whether to grant Hong Kong military service veterans entitlement to British citizens passports and right of abode in the UK is to be announced.

Lord Murray of Blidworth: The Government remains committed to implementing a policy to ensure Hong Kong military service veterans are treated in a similar way to other non-UK service personnel who were based in Hong Kong prior to the handover.We will update Parliament with more details once collective agreement on this policy has been reached. .

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Council Tax: Debts

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government, given the increases in council tax, (1) whether they are monitoring the level of council tax debt, and (2) what support they are providing to people in arrears.

Baroness Scott of Bybrook: Data on council tax arrears is collected for England by local authorities and the latest data for 2021-22 can be found here.Councils are required to have locally designed council tax support schemes to help low income households to pay their council tax bills. The Government is providing a significant package of support to help households with the rising cost of living. Further information on this package of support can be found here.Quarterly return of Council Tax etc. (xlsx, 165.8KB)Help for Households (docx, 79.2KB)

Northern Ireland Office

Elections: Local Government

Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of King Charles's coronation coinciding with the continuation of the count for the Northern Ireland Local Government Elections; and what steps they will take to ensure that the people of Northern Ireland can fully participate in the coronation celebrations.

Lord Caine: The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is considering the options available to ensure people in Northern Ireland can celebrate the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III while ensuring the smooth running of the democratic process.

Elections: Local Government

Lord Browne of Belmont: To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to give the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland the power to change the date of the local elections in that country to avoid the counting of votes clashing with Coronation Day.

Lord Caine: The Government already has the power to change the date of local elections by order under section 84 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland is considering options to ensure people in Northern Ireland can celebrate the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III while ensuring the smooth running of the democratic process.

Planning: Northern Ireland

Viscount Waverley: To ask His Majesty's Government how planning reform will be progressed in the absence of ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive.

Lord Caine: In the absence of Northern Ireland Executive ministers, the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc.) Act will provide Northern Ireland civil servants with the clarity they require to take the limited but necessary decisions to maintain delivery of public services and operate in the public interest. The Act does not give the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland direction powers on specific policies, other than in relation to pressing public appointments and the requirement to set the regional rate.The accompanying guidance to this legislation, published in draft on 29 November 2022, will help NI civil servants take into account whether taking a decision is in the public interest and recognises that there will be some decisions that should rightly wait for a Minister to be in place.